By the 15th century, it was nominally Islamized until the Spanish Conquistadors arrived via Mexico. They renamed the area Nuevo Reino de Castilla (New Kingdom of Castille) and shortened the nickname, Maynilà to Manila and using it as the official name.

The earliest evidence of human life in and around the area of Manila is the nearby Angono Petroglyphs dated to around 3000 BC. Furthermore, negritos, a class of Australoid peoples, became the aboriginal inhabitants of the Philippines. They were found across Luzon before the Malayo-Polynesians migrated in and assimilated them.[17]

The Kingdom of Maynila flourished during the latter half of the Ming Dynasty as a result of direct trade relations with China. Ancient Tondo was maintained as the traditional capital of the empire, with its rulers as sovereign kings and not mere chieftains, and were addressed variously as panginuan ln Meranau or panginoón in Tagalog ("lords"); anák banwa ("son of heaven"); or lakandula ("lord of the palace"), the Emperor of China considered the Lakans (rulers of ancient Manila) "王" (Kings). In the 13th century, the city consisted of a fortified settlement and trading quarter at the shores of the Pasig River, on top of previous older towns. Manila was then invaded by the indianized empire of Majapahit as referenced in the epic eulogy poem Nagarakretagama which inscribed its conquest by MaharajaHayam Wuruk.[11] Selurong "षेलुरोन्ग्" which is a historical name for the city of Manila is listed in Canto 14 alongside Sulot, which is now Sulu, and Kalka.[11]

During the reign of Sultan Bolkiah from 1485 to 1521, the Sultanate of Brunei invaded, wanting to take advantage of Tondo's China trade by attacking its environs and establishing "كوتا سلودوڠ Kota Saludong" (Now Manila). They ruled under and gave yearly tribute to the Sultanate of Brunei as its satellite state.[12] They established a new dynasty under the local leader who accepted Islam and became Rajah Salalila or Tariq Sulayman I. He also established a trading challenge to the already rich House of Lakan Dula in Tondo. Islam was further strengthened by the arrival of Muslim traders from the Arab-Indian area and Southeast Asia.[18] Manila was temporarily besieged by the invasion of Chinese pirate-warlord Limahong (1574) before it became the seat of the colonial government of Spain.

On June 24, 1571, Spanish conquistadorMiguel López de Legazpi arrived from New Spain (now Mexico), and then exercised rule of the Spanish city of Manila as a territory of New Spain with the establishment of a city council in what today is the district of Intramuros.[19] López de Legazpi had the local royalty executed or exiled, after the failure of the Tondo Conspiracy; a plot wherein an alliance between Japanese merchants, Luzon's Huangs with several Datus and Rajahs plus the Brunei Sultanate would band together to execute the Spaniards and their Latin-American mercenaries, and Visayan allies. At the conclusion of which, the victorious Spaniards made Manila the capital of the Spanish East Indies and of the Philippines, which the empire would control for the next three centuries, from 1565 to 1898.

After the British occupation, direct trade and communications with Spain facilitated by the opening of the Suez Canal, supplanted indirect rule via the Viceroyalty. Eventually, Mexican Independence in 1821 necessitated direct rule from Spain.[26] Under direct Spanish rule, banking, industry and education flourished more than in the past two centuries.[27]

The growing wealth and education attracted Indian, Chinese, Latino, European, and local migrants from the Philippine provinces to Manila, all of whom elected a nascent Filipino nationality regardless of ethnicity.[28] The developments also facilitated the rise of an illustrado class which espoused liberal ideas, the ideological foundations of the Philippine Revolution which sought independence from Spain.

Upon drafting a new charter for Manila in June 1901, the Americans made official what had long been tacit: that the City of Manila was not Intramuros alone but also all its arrabales. The new city charter proclaimed that Maila was composed of eleven districts, or wards—presumably Tondo, Binondo, Santa Cruz, Sampaloc, San Miguel, Pandacan, Santa Ana, Paco, Malate, Ermita and Intramuros. In addition to these, the Church recognized five parishes as Manileno—namely, Gagalangin, Trozo, Balic-Balic, Santa Mesa and Singalong. Later times would add two more: Balut and San Andres Bukid.[30]

Under American control, a new civilian oriented Insular Government headed by then Governor-GeneralWilliam Howard Taft invited city plannerDaniel Burnham for the transformation of Manila, to adapt the old city to changed times and modern needs.[31] The Burnham Plan included development of the road system, the use of waterways for transportation, and beautification of Manila with the improvement of waterfronts, construction of parks, parkways and various building for various activities.[32][33] The latter included a government center occupying all of Wallace Field, which extends from Luneta to the present Taft Avenue. The Philippine Capitol was to rise at the Taft Avenue end of the field, facing toward the sea, and would form, with the buildings of different government bureaus and departments, a quadrangle, lagoon in the center, and a monument to José Rizal at its Luneta end. Of Burnham's proposed government center, only three units — the Legislative Building and the building of the Finance and Agricultural departments — were completed when World War II erupted.

Due to the Japanese occupation of the Philippines, American soldiers were ordered to withdraw from the city and all military installations were removed on December 24, 1941. General Douglas MacArthur declared Manila an open city to prevent further death and destruction; despite this, the Japanese warplanes continued to bomb the city. Manila was occupied by the Japanese forces on January 2, 1942.

Manila was also the site of the bloodiest battle in the Pacific theater during the Second World War. After falling to the Empire of Japan on January 2, 1942, it was recaptured by joint American and Filipino troops from February 3 to March 3, 1945. Some 100,000 civilians were killed in Manila in February 1945.[34] It was the second most devastated city in the world after Warsaw during the Second World War. At the end of World War II, almost all of the structures in the city, particularly Intramuros, were destroyed but after the war, reconstruction took place.

In 1948, President Elpidio Quirino moved the seat of government of the Philippines to Quezon City, a new capital city in the suburbs and fields northeast of Manila, created in 1938 by former President Manuel L. Quezon, which was named after him.[35] The move ended any implementation of the Burnham Plan's intent for the government centre to be at Luneta.

With the Visayan-born Arsenio Lacson as its first elected mayor in 1952 (all mayors were appointed prior to this), the city of Manila underwent The Golden Age,[36] was revitalized, and once again became the "Pearl of the Orient", a moniker it earned before the Second World War. After Lacson's term in the 1950s, the city was led by Antonio Villegas during most of the 1960s, and Ramon Bagatsing (An Indian-Filipino) for nearly the entire decade of the 1970s until the 1986 People Power Revolution, making him the longest serving Mayor of Manila. Mayors Lacson, Villegas, and Bagatsing are often collectively considered as the "Big Three of Manila" less for their rather long tenures as the city's chief executive (continuously for over three decades, from 1952–1986), but more for their indelible contribution to the development and progress of the city and their lasting legacy in uplifting the quality of life and welfare of the people of the city of Manila.

During the dictatorship of PresidentFerdinand Marcos, the region of the Greater Manila Area was created as an integrated unit with the enactment of Presidential Decree No. 824 on November 7, 1975. The area encompassed four cities and thirteen adjoining towns, as a separate regional unit of government.[37] On the 405th anniversary of the city's foundation on June 24, 1976, Manila was reinstated by Marcos as the capital of the Philippines for its historical significance as the seat of government since the Spanish Period. Presidential Decree No. 940 states that Manila has always been to the Filipino people and in the eyes of the world, the premier city of the Philippines being the center of trade, commerce, education and culture.[38] Under Marco's dictatorship, Manila became a hot-bed of resistance activity as youths and student demonstrators repeatedly clashed with the police and military which were subservient to the regime. However, only after decades of resistance, did the non-violent People Power Revolution (Predecessor of the peaceful-revolutions that fell the iron-curtain in Europe), finally ousted the Authoritarian Marcos from power.[39]

In 1992, Alfredo Lim was elected mayor, the first Chinese-Filipino to hold the office. He was known for his anti-crime crusades. Lim was succeeded by Lito Atienza, who served as his vice-mayor. Atienza was known for his campaign (and city slogan) "Buhayin ang Maynila" (Revive Manila), which saw the establishment of several parks and the repair and rehabilitation of the city's deteriorating facilities. He was the city's mayor for 3 terms (9 years) before being termed out of office.

Alfredo Lim once again ran for mayor and defeated Atienza's son Ali in the 2007 city election and immediately reversed all of Atienza's projects[40] claiming Atienza's projects made little contribution to the improvements of the city. The relationship of both parties turned bitter, with the two pitting again during the 2010 city elections in which Lim won against Atienza.

Among the numerous controversies surrounding Lim's administration were the filing of human rights complaints against him and other city officials by councilor Dennis Alcoreza on 2008,[41] the resignation of 24 city officials because of the maltreatment of Lim's police forces, and his bloody resolution of the Rizal Park hostage taking incident, one of the deadliest hostage crisis in the Philippines. Lim was also accused of graft and corruption,[42] believed to be the cause of the city's bankruptcy. These allegations were later followed by a complaint on 2012 by Vice Mayor Isko Moreno and 28 city councilors which cited that Lim's statement in a meeting were "life-threatening" to them.[43][44] On the 2013 elections, former PresidentJoseph Estrada defeated Lim in the mayoral race.

Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila bay, which rests on the western shores of Luzon. The city lies 800 miles (1,300 kilometers) from mainland Asia.[45] The Pasig River bisects the city. Almost all of the city sits on top of centuries of prehistoric alluvial deposits built by the waters of the Pasig and on some land reclaimed from Manila Bay.

The city's land has been altered substantially by human intervention, with considerable land reclamation along the waterfronts since the American colonial times. Some of the natural variations in topography have been evened out due to the urbanization of the city. As of 2007, the city has a land area of 24.98 square kilometres (9.64 sq mi)[4] and has a total area of 38.55 square kilometres (14.88 sq mi).[3]

Manila is politically divided into 897 barangays, the smallest unit of local government in the Philippines. Each barangay has its own chairperson and councilors. For administrative convenience, all the barangays in Manila are grouped into 100 zones. These zones have no form of local government. The city itself is composed of 16 former towns and municipalities absorbed by the city in the 19th century. These places are further grouped into six Legislative Districts.

Manila sits astride the Pacific typhoon belt and is criss-crossed by several fault lines. This led to Manila and its metropolitan region to be ranked as the second riskiest capital (city) to live in according to Swiss Re.[46] The seismically active Marikina Valley Fault System poses a threat to Manila and the surrounding regions.[46] Manila endured several deadly earthquakes, notably in 1645 and in 1677 which destroyed the stone and brick medieval city.[47] Succeeding city architects, engineers, and urban planners has is trying to design the city to withstand earthquakes. It started with the adoptation of the Earthquake Baroque style during the Spanish colonial period[48] up to the present-day as the people of Manila are ensuring to have their structures earthquake-resilient.[49]

Manila has architecturally significant buildings in a wide range of styles spanning distinct historical and cultural periods. Architectural styles reflect American, Spanish, Chinese, and Malay influences.[50] Architect Daniel Burnham design the Rizal Park and a number of government buildings. Architects Antonio Toledo and Juan M. Arellano also designed some significant buildings in Manila. Works of Arellano includes Manila Metropolitan Theater and the Manila Central Post Office Buildings, while Antonio Toledo designed the Manila City Hall. Since the 1930s, Art Deco theaters in Manila flourished, some of which are designed by National ArtistsJuan Nakpil and Pablo Antonio. The historic Escolta Street in Binondo features many buildings of neo-classical and beaux-arts style of architecture designed by prominent Filipino architects in the 1920s to the late 1930s. Many architects, artists, historians and other groups are pushing for the revival of this historic street, which was once the prime street of the Philippines.[51] Since Manila is prone to earthquakes, the Colonial architects invented the style called Earthquake Baroque which churches and government buildings during the Spanish colonial period adopted.[48] As a result, succeeding earthquakes of the 18th and 19th centuries barely affected Manila, although it did periodically level the surrounding area. Modern buildings in and around Manila are designed and retrofitted to withstand earthquake in accordance to the country's building code and the international standard code.

Humidity levels are usually very high all year round. Manila has a distinct dry season from late December through May, and a relatively lengthy wet season that covers the remaining period with warm temperatures. In the rainy season it rarely rains all day but the rainfall is very heavy during short periods. Typhoons usually occur from June to September.[54]

Largely due to industrial waste and heavy reliance on automobiles, Manila suffers from air pollution[58][59] in the form of smog[60] which affects 98% of the residents of the city[61] and results in more than 4,000 deaths per year.[62]Open dump sites and industrial waste contribute to increasing pollution within the city.[63] The district of Ermita is the most air polluted district in the city.[63] Several rivers in Manila have been considered biologically dead. The Pasig River, where 150 tons of domestic waste and 75 tons of industrial waste were dumped daily according to a report in 2003, is considered as one of the most polluted rivers in the world.[64] Lack of adequate infrastructure is one of the causes of pollution in the city[65] and several measures have been taken to ensure that the city can have the infrastructures it needs to avert future disasters.

Manila is also affected by as many as 6 or 7 typhoons every year, which causes constant flooding.[66] A particularly bad one, Typhoon Rammasun, also known as Typhoon Glenda, on July 15–16, 2014 caused a 90% power blackout in Manila, and killed 27 people in various parts of the country in and around the capital.[67]

In order to adapt, the city has resorted to dredging its rivers and improving its drainage network. The Pasig River Rehabilitation Commission is in charge of cleaning up the Pasig River for transportation, recreation and tourism purposes.[68] Because of rehabilitation efforts, several waterways in Manila are now cleaned-up and already lined with trees, plants and flowers instead of slums, which are now relocated in other areas.[69][70]

Manila is the most densely populated city in the world with 43,079 inhabitants per km2.[8] District 6 is listed as being the most dense with 68,266 inhabitants per km2, followed by District 1 with 64,936 and District 2 with 64,710, respectively. District 5 is the least densely populated area with 19,235.[71]

Manila's population density dwarfs that of Kolkata (27,774 inhabitants per km2), Mumbai (22,937 inhabitants per km2), Paris (20,164 inhabitants per km2), Dhaka (19,447 inhabitants per km2), Shanghai (16,364 inhabitants per km2, with its most dense district, Nanshi, having a density of 56,785 inhabitants per km2), and Tokyo (10,087 inhabitants per km2).[71]

The vernacular language is Filipino, based mostly on the Tagalog of surrounding areas, and this Manila form of speaking Tagalog has essentially become the lingua franca of the Philippines, having spread throughout the archipelago through mass media and entertainment. Meanwhile, English is the language most widely used in education, business, and heavily in everyday usage throughout the Metro Manila region and the Philippines itself. A number of older residents can still speak basic Spanish, which used to be a mandatory subject in the curriculum of Philippine universities and colleges, and many children of Japanese Filipino, Indian Filipino, and other migrants or expatriates also speak their parents' languages at home, aside from English and/or Filipino for everyday use. Minnan Chinese (known as Lannang-oe) is spoken by the city's Chinese-Filipino community.

The Port of Manila is the largest seaport in the Philippines, making it the premier international shipping gateway to the country. The Philippine Ports Authority is government agency responsible to oversee the operation and management of the ports. The International Container Terminal Services Inc. cited by the Asian Development Bank as one of the top five major maritime terminal operators in the world[72][73] has its headquarters and main operations on the ports of Manila. The Asian Terminal Incorporated also operates and employs local residents in the city, having its main operation along the Manila South Harbor and its container depository located in Santa Mesa.

Binondo, the largest Chinatown in the world, was the center of commerce and business activities in the city. Numerous residential and office skyscrapers are found within its medieval streets. Plans to make the Chinatown area into a business process outsourcing (BPO) hub progresses and is aggressively pursued by the city government of Manila. 30 buildings are already identified to be converted into BPO offices. These buildings are mostly located along the Escolta Street of Binondo, which are all unoccupied and can be converted into offices.[74] Near Binondo is Divisoria, a place in Manila dubbed as the shopping mecca of the Philippines. Clusters of shopping malls are found within this place, along with several small-scale stores that sells products and goods at bargain price. Divisoria's famous landmark is the Tutuban Center, a large shopping mall that is a part of the Philippine National Railways' Main Station. It attracts 1 million people every month, but is expected to add another 400,000 people when the LRT-2 West Extension is constructed, making it Manila's busiest transfer station.[75]

Diverse manufacturers within the city produce industrial-related products such as chemicals, textiles, clothing, and electronic goods. Food and beverages and tobacco products also produced. Local entrepreneurs continue to process primary commodities for export, including rope, plywood, refined sugar, copra, and coconut oil. The food-processing industry is one of the most stable major manufacturing sector in the city.

The Pandacan Oil Depot houses the storage facilities and distribution terminals of the three major players in the country's petroleum industry, namely Caltex Philippines, Pilipinas Shell and Petron Corporation. The oil depot has been a subject of various concerns, including its environmental and health impact to the residents of Manila. The Supreme Court has ordered a decision for the oil depot to submit its relocation plans and is expected to be relocated outside the city by July 2015.[76][77]

The Filipino-Chinese Friendship Arch in Binondo, the oldest Chinatown in the world.

The city's cash position in 2011 stated that Manila has ₱1.6 billion cash-at-hand while its gross operating expenses was ₱2.97 billion.[86] The financial expenses of the city was P45 million,[86] and has a liability of 3.3 billion.[86]

On September 25, 2014, the Commission on Audit released its 2013 Annual Financial Report citing the city's income at ₱10.1 billion with an asset worth of ₱18.6 billion.[87]

Among the local government units, Manila has the highest budget allocation to health. It was also one of the cities with the highest tax and internal revenue.[88] Tax revenue accounts for 46% of the city's income in 2012.[89]

Tourism is a vital industry in Manila, and it receives approximately over 1 million tourists each year.[78] Major destinations include the walled city of Intramuros, Cultural Center of the Philippines,[note 1]Manila Ocean Park, Binondo, and the complex of the National Museum of the Philippines. Rizal Park is a major tourist attraction in the Philippines. Covering 58 hectares (140 acres),[90] the park was constructed as an honor and dedication to the country's national hero José Rizal, who was executed in the same place where the park was created by the Spaniards on charges of subversion. The flagpole west of the Rizal Monument is the Kilometer Zero marker for distances to the rest of the country. Ermita and Malate, are Manila's center of nightlight and is a locally well-known shopping destination. These places also has a wide variety of hotels, restaurants, clubs, bars, cafes, art and boutique shops. The nightlife offers everything from cultural exhibitions to discothèques, casinos, entertainment lounges, and fashionable cafes. The Department of Tourism designates Manila as the pioneer of medical tourism, expecting it to generate $1 billion in revenue annually.[91] However, lack of progressive health system, inadequate infrastructure and the unstable political environment are seen as hindrances for its growth.[92]

Robinsons Place Manila is the largest shopping mall in the city.[95] The mall was the second and by-far, the largest Robinson Mall ever built by John Gokongwei, the mall features a wide range of local and international retail shops, dining outlets, entertainment facilities and service centers, it also features anchor stores such as Robinsons Supermarket, Robinsons Department Store and Robinsons Movieworld.

SM Supermall maintains presence in the city. One of their shopping mall is the SM City Manila, the first SM Supermall in the city featuring major SM brands like the The SM Store, SM Supermarket, SM Cinemas and SM Foodcourt. The mall is located right beside the Manila City Hall. SM City San Lazaro is the second SM Supermall in Manila. It is located in Santa Cruz. SM City San Lazaro was constructed on the site of the former San Lazaro Hippodrome, a racetrack for horses. The building of the former Manila Royal Hotel in Quiapo which is famed for its revolving restaurant atop is now the SM Clearance Center which was established in 1972.[96] Also, the site of the first SM Store is located at Carlos Palanca Sr. (formerly Echague) Street in San Miguel.

Quiapo is referred as the "Old Downtown" where tiangges (flea market), botique shops, music and electronics stores are common. C.M. Recto Avenue is where lots of department stores are located. One of Recto Avenue's famous destination is Divisoria, home to numerous shopping malls in the city. It is also dubbed as the shopping mecca of the Philippines where everything is sold at bargain price. Binondo, the oldest Chinatown in the world,[25] is the city's center of commerce and trade for all types of businesses run by Filipino-Chinese merchants with a wide variety of Chinese and Filipino shops and restaurants.

As a result of Spanish cultural influence, Manila is a predominantly Christian city. As of 2010, Roman Catholics comprises 93.5% of the population, followed by adherents of the Philippine Independent Church (2.4%); Iglesia ni Cristo (1.9%); various Protestant churches (1.8%); and Buddhists (1.1%). Members of other religions comprises the remaining 1.4% of the city's population.[98]

The indigenous Iglesia ni Cristo has several locales (akin to parishes) in the city, including its very first chapel (now a museum) in Punta, Sta. Ana. Evangelical and Pentecostal denominations also thrives within the city; the Philippine Bible Society has its headquarters in Manila. Also, the main campus of the Cathedral of Praise is located along Taft Avenue. The Jesus Is Lord Church also has several branches and campuses in Manila, and celebrates its anniversary yearly at Quirino Grandstand in Rizal Park.

The city also hosts other religions. There are many Buddhist and Taoist temples serving the Chinese Filipino community. Quiapo is home to a sizable Muslim population which worships at Masjid Al-Dahab. Members of the Indian expatriate population have the option of worshiping at the large Hindu temple in the city, or at the Sikhgurdwara along United Nations Avenue. The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the Philippines, the governing body of the Filipino Bahá'í community, is headquartered near Manila's eastern border with Makati.

Manila celebrates civic and national holidays. Manila Day, which celebrates the city's founding on June 24, 1571, was first proclaimed by Herminio A. Astorga (then Vice Mayor of Manila) on June 24, 1962 and has been annually commemorated, under the patronage of John the Baptist. Locally, each of the city's barangays also have their own festivities guided by their own patron saint. The city is also the host to the Feast of the Black Nazarene, held every January 9, which draws millions of Catholic devotees. Another religious feasts held in Manila was the Feast of the Nuestra Señora de los Desamparados de Manila (Our Lady of the Abandoned), the patron saint of Santa Ana and was held every May 12. Non-religious holidays include the New Year's Day, National Heroes' Day, Bonifacio Day and Rizal Day.

As the cultural center of the Philippines, Manila houses a number of notable museums. Bahay Tsinoy, one of Manila's most prominent museums, documents the Chinese lives and contributions in the history of the Philippines. The Intramuros Light and Sound Museum chronicles the Filipinos desire for freedom during the revolution under Rizal's leadership and other revolutionary leaders. The Metropolitan Museum of Manila exhibits the Filipino arts and culture. The Museum of Manila is the city-owned museum that exhibits the city's culture and history.

Sports in Manila have a long and distinguished history. The city's, and in general the country's main sport is basketball, and most barangays have a makeshift basketball court, with court markings drawn on the streets. Larger barangays have covered courts where interbarangay leagues are held every summer (April to May).

The city has several well-known sports venues, such as the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex and San Andres Gym, the home of the now defunct Manila Metrostars.[100] The Rizal Memorial Sports Complex houses the Rizal Memorial Track and Football Stadium, the Baseball Stadium, Tennis Courts, Memorial Coliseum and the Ninoy Aquino Stadium (the latter two are indoor arenas).

The Mayor of Manila (Filipino: Alkalde ng Maynila) is restricted to three consecutive terms, totaling nine years, although a Mayor can be elected again after an interruption of one term. The Vice-Mayor is the Presiding Officer of the Manila City Council composed of the six elected City Councilors of the legislative districts; the local President of the Association of Barangay Captains; and the Sangguniang Kabataan (youth council) president. The Mayor's office and Council seat is Manila City Hall. The civic judicial branch is administered by the Supreme Court of the Philippines under the Metro Manila judicial region.

The incumbent Mayor of the city is Joseph Estrada, former President of the Republic of the Philippines, who defeated former mayor Alfredo Lim (2007-2013) in the 2013 local election. Isko Moreno is the city's incumbent Vice-Mayor.

The coat of arms of Manila is composed of the city's modern coat-of-arms, with colours mirroring those of the National Flag. It is a modified form of the city's colonial arms bestowed in the 16th century.

The arms consist of a pre-Hispanic shield, horizontally divided into red and blue fields. The top, red half depicts the city's nickname, "Pearl of the Orient", while the lower, blue half is charged with a sea-lion surmounting the waves of the River Pasig and Manila Bay. The sea-lion originally represented the islands's former colonial status as an ultramar (overseas) possession of Spain, and is ultimately derived from the arms of the León.

The arms are surrounded by a white roundel containing the words Lungsod ng Maynila and Pilipinas (Filipino, "City of Manila"; "Philippines"), and six yellow stars representing the city's six congressional districts.

The city of Manila is divided into sixteen defined places which are further subdivided into 897 barangays that are only known by sequential numbers instead of names.[6] These places are formerly towns absorbed by Manila in the 19th Century. They do not have their own set of selected officials. Manila's 897 barangays are further grouped into officially defined "zones", which are clusters of two or more barangays.

Data presented by the National Statistics Office does not recognize neither San Andrés and Santa Mesa. Data for San Andrés was included in Santa Ana while data from the Santa Mesa area is still included in Sampaloc. Both of these areas have been separated from their places after having their own parishes,[105] and now belongs to a new congressional district. San Andrés now belongs to the 5th District while Santa Mesa is now a part of the 6th District.

Manila has six legislative districts that serve as the constituencies for the election of the city's representatives to the lower house of the Congress of the Philippines and of the regular members to the Sangguniang Panlungsod (SP; City Council). Each district elects one representative to the House of Representatives and six SP members to the council. The city, along with the rest of the nation, elects 12 senators as one at-large district.

The 1st District (2007 population: 407,331) is Manila's (and the country's) most densely populated congressional district. It covers the western portion of Tondo that lies along Manila Bay.

The 2nd District (2007 population: 223,273) comprises the eastern inland portion of Tondo, a neighborhood known as Gagalangin.

Manila, being the seat of political power of the Philippines, has several national government offices headquartered at the city. Planning for the development for being the center of government started during the early years of American colonization to the country when they envisioned a well-designed city outside the walls of Intramuros. The strategic location chosen was Bagumbayan, a former town which is now the Rizal Park to become the center of government and a design commission was given to Daniel Burnham to create a master plan for the city patterned after Washington D.C.. These improvements were eventually abandoned under the Commonwealth Government of Manuel L. Quezon.

A new government center was to be built on the hills northeast of Manila, or what is now Quezon City. Several government agencies have set up their headquarters in Quezon City but several key government offices still reside in Manila. However, many of the plans were substantially altered after the devastation of Manila during World War II and by subsequent administrations.

One of the more famous modes of transportation in Manila is the jeepney. Patterned after U.S. army jeeps, these have been in use since the years immediately following World War II.[106] Today, the Tamaraw FX, the third generation Toyota Kijang, has begun to compete directly with jeepneys. Along with buses, jeepneys and Tamaraws follow fixed routes for a set price.

On a for-hire basis, the city is served by numerous taxicabs, "tricycles" (motorcycles with sidecars, the Philippine version of the auto rickshaw), and "trisikads" or "sikads" (bicycles with a sidecars, the Philippine version of pedicabs). In some areas, especially in Divisoria, motorized pedicabs are popular. Spanish-era horse-drawn calesas are still a popular tourist attraction and mode of transportation in the streets of Binondo and Intramuros. All types of public transport are privately owned and operated under government franchise.

The city is serviced by the LRT-1 and LRT-2 which forms the LRTA system, as distinct from the MRT-3 which is under the MRTC system that services other parts of Metro Manila. Development of the railway system began in the 1970s under the Marcos administration, making it the first light rail transport in Southeast Asia. These systems are currently undergoing a multi-billion dollar expansion.[107]LRT Line 1 runs along the length of Taft Avenue (R-2) and Rizal Avenue (R-9), and the LRT Line 2 runs along Claro M. Recto Avenue (C-1) and Ramon Magsaysay Boulevard (R-6) from Santa Cruz, through Quezon City, up to Santolan in Marikina.

In 2006, Forbes magazine ranked Manila "the world's most congested city". Manila has become notorious for its frequent traffic jams and high densities.[108] The government has undertaken several projects to alleviate the traffic in the city. Some of the projects include: the construction of a new flyover at Sampaloc,[109] the construction of the Metro Manila Skyway Stage 3, the proposed LRT Line 2 (west) extension from Recto to Tondo or the Port Area,[110] and the expansion of several national and local roads. However, such projects have yet to make any meaningful impact, and the traffic jams and congestion continue unabated.[111] The urban planning of the Manila and the whole metropolis was based on the Metro Manila Dream Plan. It was commenced to address Metro Manila's urban planning and transportation. It consists of a list of short term priority projects and medium to long term projects lasting up to 2030.[112][113]

Manila is the location of the main office of the Department of Health. The national health department also operates the San Lazaro Hospital, a special referral tertiary hospital that is situated within its compound. The headquarters of the World Health Organization Regional Office for the Western Pacific, and the World Health Organization Country Office for the Philippines are also located in the city.

The University Belt refers to the area where there is a high concentration or a cluster of colleges and universities in the city and it is commonly understood as the one where the San Miguel, Quiapo and Sampaloc districts meet. Generally, it includes the western end of España Boulevard, Nicanor Reyes St. (formerly Morayta St.), the eastern end of Claro M. Recto Avenue (formerly Azcarraga), Legarda Avenue, Mendiola Street, and the different side streets. Each of the colleges and universities found here are at a short walking distance of each other. Another cluster of colleges lies along the southern bank of the Pasig River, mostly at the Intramuros and Ermita districts, and still a smaller cluster is found at the southernmost part of Malate near the border with Pasay such as the private co-educational institution of De La Salle University, the largest of all De La Salle University System of schools. The high concentration of higher learning institutions makes Manila the country's educational capital.

^The city limits was at Vicente Sotto Street. The rest of the place south of the street belongs to Pasay. Landmarks in CCP that falls under the jurisdiction of Manila includes the National Theater and the Coconut Palace.

^ abcGerini, G. E. (1905). "The Nagarakretagama List of Countries on the Indo-Chinese Mainland (Circâ 1380 A.D.)". The Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland (Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland) (July 1905): 485–511. JSTOR25210168.

^Guevarra, Rudy P. (2007). Mexipino: A history of multiethnic identity and the formation of the Mexican and Filipino communities of San Diego, 1900–1965. University of California, Santa Barbara. ISBN 0549122869

^Alave, Kristine L. (18 August 2004). "METRO MANILA AIR POLLUTED BEYOND ACCEPTABLE LEVELS". Clean Air Initiative – Asia. Manila: Cleanairnet.org. Archived from the original on 3 December 2005. Retrieved 4 March 2014. Metro Manila air is unsafe and harmful, with its pollutants at levels higher than what is acceptable worldwide, the Department of Health said yesterday

^de Guzman, Lawrence (11 November 2006). "Pasig now one of world's most polluted rivers". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved 18 June 2010. ONCE the country's most celebrated waterways, the Pasig is now one of the world's most polluted rivers, according to a report launched Thursday by the United Nations Human Development Program (UNDP) in Cape Town, South Africa.

^"Article". Archived from the original on 3 May 2007. Retrieved 4 March 2014. Presidential Decree Number 274, Pertaining to the Preservation, Beautification, Improvement, and Gainful Utilization of the Pasig River, Providing for the Regulation and Control of the Pollution of the River and Its Banks In Order to Enhance Its Development, Thereby Maximizing Its Utilization for Socio-Economic Purposes.